A new family-owned stand in the Lebanon Farmers Market is putting a twist on the Carmany family’s soft pretzels. The stand, called Baked with a Twist, opened July 13 by Lindsay Hoppes and her family.
The “baked” in Baked with a Twist is an acronym, formed with the first initials of members of Lindsay Hoppes’ family, including her daughters, Breanna and Katelyn, her granddaughter, Everly, and her husband, Dean. Beyond the name, they work together as a family to help run the stand.
“I think that being together for 10-hour days is a lot of fun,” said Breanna Hoppes. “It can be a little challenging [because] it gets a little chaotic in the kitchen. But overall, we love working together.”
“It makes everything a lot more fun, and I think that makes the business stronger.”
In addition to soft pretzels, Baked with a Twist sells drinks and homemade baked goods, with a menu that is frequently updated with new creations, such as s’mores muffins, lavender lemonade, and everything bagel pretzels. Taste-testing and thinking of new ideas, like running the stand, is a family effort.
“[My family has] probably eaten more soft pretzels in the past couple of months than they have in their entire lives,” said Lindsay Hoppes. “It’s lots of trial and error, taste-testing, and seeing what people ask for.”
When they first moved to Lebanon from the Allentown area, Lindsay Hoppes and her husband, Dean, visited the Farmer’s Market and tried the Carmany Double Twist pretzels. However, the next time they visited, the stand was gone. They later saw an advertisement in the Merchandiser that the Carmany family was selling their business and decided to take that opportunity.
“We thought it’d be a great opportunity to meet people, to connect with the community, and to do something that I love all the time,” said Lindsay Hoppes. “[We] just became empty-nesters this year, and it got to the point where I was baking too much for two people to consume anymore, so this just seemed like the perfect opportunity at the perfect time.”
Before they opened the stand, the Hoppes family met with Yvonne Carmany, the previous owner of Carmany Double Twist, to learn more about the business. She showed them what she did in the market, how she made the pretzels, and how she developed her recipes.
“She showed us everything she knew,” said Lindsay Hoppes. “We’re going to use her original recipe, but we’re going to feature our own items every week, so it [will be] kind of a new twist on the classic pretzel.”
In addition to the help from the Carmany family, Lindsay and Breanna Hoppes have appreciated the community aspect of the Lebanon Farmer’s Market.
“It’s definitely been a really welcoming community,” said Breanna Hoppes. “Everybody’s super kind and really supportive of local businesses.”
“It’s just so cool to come in in the morning, and you just see an empty market with vendors setting up, and then all of a sudden, it’s just full of people,” said Lindsay Hoppes. “It’s a different crowd every day, and it just becomes so vibrant.”
“It’s just such an interesting mix of people together, young and old.”
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